comments 16

I’m not sure about the very last comment, that epoch 6 is the ultimate destiny of the universe, or something to that effect. It is certainly a rational vision, but does it have to stop there because we are unable to imagine, or predict with any certainty based on our current stage of development, beyond it?

One who has to ask why a voice recognition reponder was used for the narrative doesn’t know much about Ray Kurzweil and his extensive work in artificial intelligience.and the merger of technology with human intelligence as the in the description of the epochs. It simply symbolizes his work.

This is a fascinating jump into the future. I’m strongly optimists that finally Universe wakes up (if this has not already happened or is happening…). Whoever the laws of nature allow the generation of more and more complex information (this is the case at least in a large part of our visible universe), an infinite number of civilization have or will born. Even if a small percentage is able to evolve into galactic civilizations, many will finally spread into the universe. A doubt remains about the possibility that Universe can be destroyed by natural or intelligent powers, but I am confident that the mastering of nature forces by super intelligences has almost no limits and that “bad” intelligences will remain just local phenomena…

Why the heck did they do this with a horrible machine voice? Would have been easy to get a narrator with a nice voice, or at least a machine voice that sounds better. This one’s voice grates on the nerves.

Truth be told, yes, why would ‘they’ choose that? . None the less, I’ve been practicing (lots of things no less but, reading whole sections of the “Economist”in a breath,- in character, out loud in the ‘room’. Shameless Plug then, i, could be you’re next ‘mustDew’ narrator ‘with a nice voice’ . Why did Ray so chose to diminish the essential Human element, humm. Nice keyboards though!

I am not sure about Epoch 5 and 6 starting here on Earth. The laws of physics, chemistry and I assume biology are universal through out the universe. Surely a similar process will be happening else where in space? Is it not a bit like the anti Copernicus thinking of the Catholic Church? Why does the Earth have to be the “centre” of this development?

I agree. IMO, Epochs 5 and 6 are already under way at numerous other parts of the universe. And if that’s through then I only can think of two reasons why we are not experiencing them yet. Either it is really impossible to exceed the speed of light in which case they are not here YET. Or the level of advanced state they are in when reaching epoch 6 is so much different then our own state that we are totally oblivious of their existence.

Alternatively, mastery of quantum physics could result in what would effectively be a “cloaking shield” around less developed civilizations. It would make sense to keep a less developed civilization from seeing what’s “really” out there until they’ve demonstrated that they’re neither a threat to themselves or the rest of the universe. Mastery of nanoscale matter wouldn’t make this terribly difficult (think of the invisibility cloaks reported about elsewhere on this site taken to their logical extreme).

Perhaps what we see in the sky isn’t a true reflection of what’s there. Personally, I think there’s room for both sides of the argument.

What threat does an underdeveloped organism pose to a race that can transform themselves into energy and manipulate matter around them? The gap of threat between a man on a plain with a spear versus a man a mile away with a sniper rifle is effectively no difference when comparing the threat we could pose to an Epoch 6 race, even with some kind of technology stealing..